Have you ever wondered what it means to be an “innovator”? Are you curious about how and where innovation happens? Do you want to work with students from other disciplines and programs on your own innovative projects? STS 3105 is a project-based course for undergraduate students from all disciplines with a passion for collaboration. We will use readings, discussion, and small assignments to move beyond the buzzword and investigate where the term comes from, how it has been used in the past, what it means today to be an innovator, and what might be left out of common conceptions of innovation. The main outcome of the course will be a collaborative group project through which students will put their analysis and discussion into practice.

This course is intended to give students a hands-on introduction to physical computing, where computing mediates a person’s interactions with the environment. The course will be run in a studio setting, providing students with an exposure to a variety of prototyping and implementation techniques. Using simple microcontroller boards such as the Arduino and Raspberry Pi, along with sensors, actuators and other electronics, students will create interactive and responsive devices, installations and environments. The course will take a human-centered design approach to exploring the range of expressions and affordances provided by physical objects whose response is determined by computation. The course work will consist of short projects to learn new techniques and a longer term, more open-ended project for creative application of those techniques.

‘Biomimicry’ or ‘Bio-Inspiration’ is an experimental design methodology that looks to nature’s examples for impactful, responsible solutions to humankind’s most intractable problems: fresh water access, pollution remediation, manufacturing waste, along with many others. This course will explore ways that biological insight can play a significant role in solving these challenges through a semester long design project. At the same time, a central educational focus will be to promote true interdisciplinary collaboration by integrating teams with backgrounds in life sciences, engineering and design.

MUS 3066 is project-based course in computer music programming, using the CsoundQt programming environment, that covers the composition of computer-generated music, and the theory and application of synthesis and digital signal processing. In addition to weekly reading and programming Assignments, students will produce a graphic analysis of a standard work of computer-music, and compose a piece that should utilize many of the techniques discussed in class and experimented with in the Assignments. This course is open to all majors.

MUS3066 is also offered as a graduate flavored course MUS5984 (Interactive Computer Music & Multimedia Design).

The Startup Class is a semester-long course for teams of students who are interested in learning to become technology leaders and innovators through a structured curriculum that focuses on the development of a business model through customer discovery and assessment of product market fit. Teams will receive structured mentoring and have the opportunity to connect to professionals and fellow entrepreneurs. Applications due by December 6 (midnight). More Details.

MUS 3314 is a new music workshop, in which students, guided by a faculty composer, collaborate on new pieces for electroacoustic ensemble. Each student will compose a structured improvisation, scored with a combination of traditional, graphic, and text notation, that L2Ork (Linux Laptop Orchestra) will perform, with Wii Remotes and Nunchuks, laptop computers, and dome speaker arrays.

From smart phones to automobiles, understanding the human genome to exploring social networks, scientific and technological innovation is the result of the work of not just scientists and engineers, but artists and designers as well. The challenges of the 21st century demand creative processes that stem from the realization that design, aesthetic, and technological development have become symbiotic. Form no longer follows function; form and function are inseparable. In this colloquium we will be discussing and analyzing the creative process in the context of working on trans-disciplinary projects in a studio environment. We will explore innovation by combining the diverse perspectives of the artist, designer, engineer, and scientist.